Infectious diseases remain the major cause of morbidity and mortality worldwide. The study of infectious diseases, including novel discoveries that can lead to prevention or cures, requires a good understanding of both the host and the pathogen. Scientifically, this means the study of host responses to pathogens, which is the field of immunology, and pathogen strategies for causing disease, which is part of the field of microbiology. However, historically immunology and microbiology research has proceeded to some degree along parallel paths. The intersection of these two disciplines is absolutely essential for making progress in the fight against infectious disease. This T32 Training Program, Immunology of Infectious Disease (IID), is designed to bridge the gap between microbiology and immunology research as it applies to infectious disease. Our goal is to train young scientists to be familiar in both fields, and to provide support to those scientists working at the intersection of microbiology and immunology. We have a strong and experienced training faculty from a wide range of departments and schools at the University of Pittsburgh. The IID Training Program supports pre-doctoral students from two programs that sit within the umbrella Interdisciplinary Biomedical Graduate Program: Molecular Virology and Microbiology and Immunology. Post-doctoral scholars from the labs of the training faculty are eligible for support as well. This cross-campus, cross-discipline training program has been successful for the past 10 years, and we have implemented changes to make it even more successful with this renewal application.

Public Health Relevance

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